Publisher Axel Springer claimed that blocking ads is copyright infringement, but a German court disagreed.
The Court notes that ruling otherwise would represent a “disproportionate encroachment” on users’ freedoms to make various choices, including not to load images to save bandwidth, to deactivate Javascript, or block pop-ups or tracking elements. It would also render translation tools and aids for visually impaired people as copyright infringing.
Plans for AdGuard adblocker are now on sale through StackSocial, and as of this writing the deal ends in seven days. This is the adblocker I’ve been using for a few years and one that I personally recommend. Personal Plan – This is a lifetime license that is only available to new users. The maximum number of devices you can activate the service on is three, including desktop and mobile. US$19.99 US$59 Family Plan – This is a lifetime license that is only available to new users. The maximum number of devices you can activate the service on is nine, including desktop and mobile. US$29.99 US$129. System requirements: iOS 10.0 or later, OS X 10.10 Yosemite (64 bit) or later. Unredeemed licenses can be returned for store credit within 30 days of purchase. Once your license is redeemed, all sales are final.
AdGuard, creator of a popular adblocker of the same name, started getting complaints from users that YouTube ads were slipping through. It turns out Google deployed a new algorithm for showing ads to logged in users (Read more here). AdGuard was able to create a shortcut that can block these new ads while they build similar functionality to block them with the AdGuard app. You don’t need to have the AdGuard app installed to run the shortcut. Download Shortcut
Charlotte Henry and Dave Hamilton join host Kelly Guimont to discuss Apple’s latest tactics against adverts, and look ahead to iPhone cases.
Andrew Orr joins host Kelly Guimont to discuss Security Friday news, tips for secure payment options, and some new shortcuts.
If you’re one of those folks who looks for ways to get around those YouTube ads, you’ll be interested in this simple hack posted on Reddit.
Safari 13 deprecates support for legacy extensions. Instead, you now how to download them through the Mac App Store. A GitHub user explained the uBlock Origin situation and recommends adblocking alternatives.
Get a content blocker. Not nearly as powerful as uBO, but the best option if you want to stay with Safari. Do not get the app called “uBlock”, this is unassociated with uBlockOrigin (read about the split here), and is simply a content blocker with a big negative feature of having acceptable ads built in
Due to App Store guidelines, AdGuard Pro in its current form is being discontinued. The company shared a blog post detailing what happened.
The researchers say that ad-blockers can block some, but not all of the scripts. However, AdBlock Plus has recently been updated to block all of the session replay scripts.
